Console Gaming vs PC Gaming: Which is Better?

A comprehensive look into the age old question of whether PC or consoles are the dominate gaming device. This controversial topic has been discussed a million times over. Take another look through another perspective.

Well what people tend to forget is the "GAMES". If PC games is what you want then get PC. Or if you prefer console games then get a console. But if you like what they both offer then there no reason not to own each one.

Yes consoles have been around longer than PCs, and I'm old enough to remember first hand. The first consoles arrived around 1972 while PC's started appearing a few years later. And PCs were certainly not very common in the typical home until much later.

With a console, all you have to do is buy the game, pop it in (maybe do a few installs or patches) and then play.

With PCs, you have to take up a bunch of space on your hard drive, which isn't necessarily a problem and you do have to do the same things for consoles, but consoles pretty much only need hard drives for game data, while pcs need storage space for so much more (unless you don't use your pc for anything but gaming and web surfing).

Then you have to hope that your computer can run it, and you have to also hope that there wont be any issues with your hardware that might make the game crash, and then you have to hope the game lets you use a controller if you're not the type of person who doesn't like mouse and keyboard, this is where pc gaming becomes a problem for me personally. Many games support a controller, in fact most newer games do, but not all do, and most older games don't. And things like pinnacle game profiler aren't valid solutions. Simply mapping functions to a controller like aiming aren't enough, they would have to be optimized by the devs for the controller to be acceptable/on par with how controllers work on consoles, because using a controller mapping program on a game that doesn't support it is just plain awful, and incredibly inaccurate in comparison to the consoles way of handling controllers.

Granted, that particular issue is only a problem for some people, some people love the keyboard and mouse, but for me, it kills my immersion. Using a kb/m, I'm unable to stop thinking about the fact that I'm using it. With a controller, using it is second nature and I don't think about it at all. It would probably take me years to get completely re-accustomed to a new method of control (kb/m) to the point where using it would be second nature. If it were easy enough, or if every pc game were optimized for the dualshock and the 360 gamepads(not counting mmo's and games which have too many functions for a controller to handle), I'd probably switch over to pc gaming.

But until either of those 2 things happen, I'll stick with my console. Oh, and I don't know a single person who games on pc other than wow, so all my friends are on ps3, which makes multiplayer a lot less fun on pc.

edit- Btw, I'm not claiming consoles are better, just in case someone might throw a fit over this comment. I do think PCs are better on a logical level, but consoles are much better FOR ME.

The only way to come to the conclusion that PC has fewer exclusives or less games in general is to have never owned a gaming PC.

PC has exclusives in all the most common genres, with games like ARMA, rFactor, Diablo and The Witcher. Then add a whole bunch of games in genres that don't even exist on consoles, or have 1 or 2 games in like RTS and MMO. There are also far more indie games on PC. And all this is without mentioning that the majority of games released are multiplatorm anyway, with the vast majority of those being available on PC.

I wasn't just replying just to him, there are a number of comments on this board that claim there are fewer games in general on PC, and I wasn't going to reply to them each individually.

"He's obviously talking about quality. The only genres the PC excels in is RTS, MMO, and FPS"

Only Genres? What about RPG's? There are FAR more on PC than consoles, and a number of RPG games on consoles started out as PC games like The Witcher. What about the Racing genre, where granted consoles have a couple of excellent franchises not on PC like Forza and GT, but if you're into pure sim racers then theres really no where to go but PC with titles like rFactor, IRacing, GTR and LFS.

That leaves consoles with what? Sports, fighting and TPS with the odd minor genres like hack n' slash.

Also don't give me that quality nonsense. Which platform has the better games is entirely subjective. But it can be and often is argued that games that started out as PC exclusives like Crysis only go downhill when they move to consoles due to the limitations.

lol retard, im yet to see a console exclusive with the depth, creativity, scope and interaction a PC exclusive can offer.

e.g Planetside 2, entire continent wars with 3 empires 666 players on each team with one minute teritory being bigger than the biggest map a console can render.

Yeah sure PC exclusives arent as good as console....Best RPG of the last decade witcher 2 was made for PC and was an exclusive originally because the games design by a small company was only possible on PC due to it being an open platform and not restricted pricey development platforms like consoles.

What do consoles even have that is worth mentioning anymore? uncharted? The Last of Us looks brilliant but those games can be completed on a weekend, they have no replayability or longevity, great but short aka rentals.

Longevity? In a PC you just change out a part or add something and you're good to go.If you can put in the initial investment($400-2000+) upgrading a PC is much cheaper than a new console if not the same price for much better graphics, a wider selection of games, and much more flexibility in mod tools, etc.

But you're also paying top dollar for a card thats not even being utilized at its full potential like GPUs in consoles.

I love PCs, but you never get the full potential out of them from developers because they have to develop games compatible for dozens of other cards.

Lets say we put a Radeon HD 7970 in a console with, lets say, 4 gigs of ram, and a quad core CPU running at 3.6ghz. And the same specs in a PC.

Developers are going to get a hell of a lot more out of that console because the platform is closed, and because devs have to worry about other specs from many other PCs, they're obviously not doing all they can for the PC market.

That's like saying you don't want a car with a powerful engine because you don't drive at max speed all the time. You're also saying you're content with a car that maxes out at 65... See what the problem is? Having a powerful card shouldn't be a limiting factor, especially since it can reach its max potential in a few years and be replaced so that you have even more overhead power...

Ease of use consoles ,graphics, gameplay , variety and mods pc , i have had a few probs getting games to work on pc but google hasnt failed me yet ease of use is the biggest thing console has over pc imo.

I like to think of it this way, all platforms can have their issues, but at least on PC if you have a problem with frame rate or screen tearing theres the chance that a fix is out there somewhere. Be it tweaking a config file to lower graphics settings if none are available or a framerate limiter to stop stutter/tearing. On consoles you're essentially stuck with whatever the devs deemed acceptable, and your best chance is a patch that may never arrive anyway.

Yeah i agree but sometimes pc can be a headache i must admit if you were a total pc noob and had to mess with ini files and punkbusters you wouldnt play much lol,since i got a new rig i havnt looked back rebuying multi plats using 360 controller full 1080 p is sweet.

There really isnt any better choice, its all about preference... I own both BF3 for both But I play BF3 more on PC, because it plays better on PC I like Uncharted, it only plays on PS3 (console) and I like it

So can it just be a tie between the two, and defaulted to a matter of preference?...

Will be interesting if Steam's big picture can get people to convert. Still in beta but it could move some KM/M people to a controller on the couch and move people who already like the controller on a couch to try out Steam and PC gaming.

Holy crap! I've been trying to find a way where I can navigate my PC games with JUST my controller, so that I don't have to boot the computer, put down the controller, point and click, click the game I want, click start... you know?

I just wanna turn on the computer, pick up the controller and sit back and get ready to launch the game I need (without any other tasks to do first).

So there's a new Steam coming out that you can navigate in with just a controller?

The 360 and its library become redundant if you game on PC with any regularity. Multi-plats are vastly superior, online is free, better community features within Steam, more interface options, better implementation of cloud storage...It just seems 360's advantages over the Wii & PS3 are negated by PC gaming far more than the other two are impacted.

I still game on consoles as I value their exclusives very much. Which makes Sony and Nintendo's consoles far more intriguing due to the litany of IPs not found elsewhere. Unless you're obsessed with Halo, Gears, and Forza, even most XBLA titles are timed exclusives that make their way onto other DD platforms.

with the exception of exclusive games, the consoles have over the pc version: a wider playerbase, thus making multiplayer games generally easiesr to team up on and easier to play with your friends, pc on the other hand, has mods, better graphics, 60+ fps and unfortunatly, many more cheaters.

they both have pro's and con's.

I use both, if i wanna play a game with friends, like borderlands or even a FPS, then i'd go console, if i wanna play something like skyrim, fallout, the binding of isaac, etc then pc all the way...

One thing I really love about PC gaming is that once I buy a game, it's mine forever. I don't have to worry about trading it in to put it toward a new game, or worry about letting a friend borrow it.

In fact, I don't even need friends on PC because there can only be one person playing on the same computer at a time... so I usually just have my friends watch me.

I also like messing around with the graphical settings. Gain a frame here, lose an effect there, gain an effect, lose a frame or two. For some reason I want more than my system can handle because the option is there, and then I'm unhappy with the performance.

Then of course there are bugs and driver issues.

Also, each game seems to have it's own online service... that's pretty convenient.. I hope I remembered all of my passwords and logins.

Oh yeah... Save Data... where the hell does that even go? Each game has it's own save data location... fun stuff.

I'd just rather turn on my PS3, pop in a disc and be playing the game and not having to worry about trying to get the best framerate or graphical settings. I have no other choice but to just play the damn game... which is a good thing for me and my OCD-ness.

I'd rather play on consoles, but PC gaming does have a few perks, so I still use my computer from time to time.

I'm sorry that simple stuff is hard for you. You must need help making dinner too...just pop in a HungryMan dinner, because OBVIOUSLY it is BETTER than taking the little time to learn how to cook basic meals. (if this was too difficult to understand, considering your "problems", I am referring to simple computer skills).

Now the "not such an a-hole" answer. The excuse against basic computer skills is getting old. It takes less than 10 minutes to learn how a Parent Directory works. People should be HAPPY that the option exists to install files in specific locations. Happy that there are graphics options available just in case their system is a couple years outdated (not this 3 month bs people say) But with that said, if I spend $200 on a computer, yes, it will be outdated already. Happy that saves are available for backing up. Heck, most games these days keep your saved games available even after you uninstall them. Computers take care of and are extremely convenient for gamers more than ever these days.

"Oh yeah... Save Data... where the hell does that even go? Each game has it's own save data location... fun stuff." Seriously!?!?!!

Facepalm to your whole post!!!

You make PC gaming sound like its a big complicated mess like you need to be a rocket scientist and its not that complicated. I rarely have any issues on my PC. I love my PS3 as much as the next guy and i'll agree consoles are simpler but I can turn on my PC and be playing a game in a few clicks, or none if I use Voice Command MUHAHAAA!!!